What if your business took off before you were ready? No team. No investors. Just a homemade product and a sudden wave of demand. That’s exactly what happened to Adria Marshall, founder of Ecoslay. When her flaxseed hair gel went viral overnight, she had to decide: shut it down or take the risk and build something bigger. Host Andrea Marquez unpacks how Adria scaled her side hustle into a purpose-driven brand, why staying small was her boldest move, and how she learned to embrace risk despite being a planner obsessed Virgo. Adria’s journey will show you how to build something real with what you already have. No MBA, no perfect plan – just purpose, persistence, and a few exploding jars along the way. If you’re waiting for the “perfect” moment to start, this is your sign: the mess is the journey.

Got a bold leap of your own? Share it with us in an Apple Podcasts review, Spotify comment, or email us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com – you might hear it in a future episode.

In this episode you’ll hear:

(01:47) Can solving your own problem turn into a business? Hear how Adria’s hair journey – and an obsession with DIY – sparked the beginnings of Ecoslay.

(05:00) Do you have to know what you’re doing before you start? Adria talks about launching her first product with no experience and no formal plan.

(06:53) What do you do when an expert says your idea won’t work? Adria hires a chemist who said her formula was impossible – so she proved him wrong.

(08:13) What would you do if your side hustle goes viral overnight? The moment a YouTuber changed everything for Ecoslay and how Adria juggled the chaos with a full-time job.

(14:40) What if your product starts exploding in the mail? The hard (and messy) lessons Adria learned and how she bounced back from her mistakes.

(16:38) How do you keep going when everything feels like too much? Adria shares how she grounds herself in difficult moments – and why making risky, values-driven decisions (like ditching plastic packaging) became her boldest moves.

(22:27) Still waiting for the “perfect” moment to start? Why Adria now sees risk as a teacher – and how she learned to bet on herself before she felt ready.